Table Of ContentMORE ADVANCE PRAISE FOR
Before Buddha Was Buddha “Rafe Martin’s illuminating, thoughtful,
and inspiring book reveals how the core ideas of Buddhism actually
play out in the realities of our lives. This is just the book my students
need to put flesh on the Buddhist bones. I recommend it
enthusiastically!”
— Prof. Abigail Levin, Niagara University
“When we meet the Buddha in these stories, we meet our self in our life.”
— Ron Hogen Green, Zen Center of New York City “A most wonderful
commentary on the jatakas, intimately connecting us with the rich history and
heritage of the Buddha’s own path. Highly recommended!”
— Taigen Henderson, Toronto Zen Center
“An excellent and most useful book!“
— Danan Henry, founding teacher of Zen Center of Denver “A great gift —
wise and down-to-earth.”
— Barbara Bonner, author of Inspiring Generosity and Inspiring Courage
“Before Buddha Was Buddha is an alarm clock for the soul. Its words wake you
up and lead you out into bright daylight. Its clarity and maturity brings
Buddhism down from the realm of the gods and makes the profundity of this
Path an actual lived reality.”
— Richard Wehrman, author of Light Was Everywhere “An important book for
anyone doing spiritual training!”
— Mitra Bishop, founding teacher of Mountain Gate–Sanmonji “Rafe Martin
draws upon his insight, his knowledge of the jatakas, and his long immersion in
the Dharma to create, through these stories and commentaries, vivid
constellations we can use to navigate our own dark times.”
— Bodhin Kjolhede, abbot and spiritual director, Rochester Zen Center
In the lifetimes before he was Siddhartha Gautama,
Shakyamuni Buddha was many things: a gardener, a
robber, a monkey — and even an ogre.
Yet even then, amid struggles and shortcomings, he was also just like us — as
we see in this enchanting book from Buddhist teacher and master storyteller
Rafe Martin. Martin starts with brisk retellings of jatakas — the ancient stories
the Buddha’s past lives — then uses them to reveal what it means to be truly
human.
“Buddha himself had difficult moments in former lives. He felt anger, loss of
faith in himself, fear, lust; he made errors and lacked courage — but he also had
tremendous resilience and a determination to keep practicing through whatever
hardship and pain might come his way. Whether you are a Buddhist or not, this
is an uplifting, important book — deeply affirming of our own humanity.”
— SUNYANA GRAEF, abbot of Vermont Zen Center
“What amazing stories these are!”
— PAT ENKYO O’HARA, author of Most Intimate
“A delightful book. Rafe Martin reveals a way of play as well as fully exploring
the deepest corners of our human hearts.”
— JAMES ISHMAEL FORD, author of If You’re Lucky, Your Heart Will Break
“Compelling, charming, and often surprising. A valuable resource for anyone
seeking deeper understanding.”
— DINTY W. MOORE, author of The Mindful Writer
“Clearly the result of decades of practice and insight, written by a very mature
teacher.”
— HOGEN BAYS, co-abbot of Great Vow Zen Monastery
“A useful and encouraging companion on the path of personal growth.”
— DALE GOLDSTEIN, author Heartwork
RAFE MARTIN is a lay teacher in the Harada-Yasutani koan line. He is founding
teacher of Endless Path Zendo, Rochester, New York, and is also an award-
winning author and storyteller whose work has been cited in Time, Newsweek,
the New York Times, and USA Today.
To Danan Henry Roshi for his teaching
and Sunyana Graef Roshi for opportunities to teach
Embody in yourself the dedication of a boy spreading his hair on muddy ground
for the Buddha to walk on.
— Zen master Dogen, referencing a jataka tale You’ll be bothered from time to
time by storms, fog, snow. When you are, think of those who went through it
before you and say to yourself, “What they could do, I can do.”
— Antoine de Saint-Exupery
Contents
Preface: Just Like Us, the Buddha Had Difficulties
1. Prince Siddhartha: The Crisis of Leaving Home
2. The Banyan Deer: Hard Choices
3. The Naga King: The Treasure of Our Human Life
4. The Master Musician: A Bodhisattva’s Anxiety and Self-Doubt
5. The Gardener Sage: Getting Free of Attachments
6. King of Kings: The Limit of Desire
7. Time Is Short: Letting Go, Heading Home
8. The Monkey Bodhisattva: The Horror of “Me and Mine”
9. Prince Temiya: Strength to Stand Firm
10. Two Cousins: Working with Karma
11. Great King Goodness: The Challenge of Nonviolence
12. The Monk Who Lied: Making Sense of Big Troubles
13. The Brave Parrot: Being Small in a Big, Troubled World
14. The Quarreling Quails: Arguments and Anger on the Path
15. The Bodhisattva Robber: What’s Right, What’s Wrong?
16. The Ogre Child: Finding the Way No Matter Who You Are
17. Hairy Kassapa: Even Great Sages Make Mistakes
18. Touching the Earth
Appendix: A Dream within a Dream — a Zen View
Bibliography
Index
About the Author
Preface: Just Like Us, the Buddha Had
Difficulties
The jataka tales are ancient stories found in both the Pali Canon and Sanskrit
traditions, recounting the many past lives and ongoing spiritual work of
Shakyamuni Buddha on his way to his final birth as the prince Siddhartha
Gautama. I have lived with and been moved as well as encouraged and inspired
by the jataka tales for many years. I first encountered them well before I ever
began Buddhist practice (in my case, Zen practice), back in college in the mid-
1960s when I first read Joseph Campbell’s Hero with a Thousand Faces.
Jataka tales, as well as the life of Buddha, were included in that
groundbreaking book, and they touched me deeply. In 1970, when I began
formal Zen practice, I already had an infant son — a daughter followed four
years later — so I was on the lookout as I set out on the Buddhist path, for
stories a family could grow on. I recall some odd circumstances around that
time, of old books of jatakas falling off shelves (literally) into my hands. We
seemed drawn to each other.
I began telling jatakas as part of my work as a storyteller and later wrote
several books of jatakas as well. I find that I keep returning to them. For me,
they made Zen and Buddhism human. Instead of philosophy or the austere
loneliness of early meditation retreats (called sesshin in the Zen tradition), I
found at the heart of these tales a person who tried hard and had a great
aspiration to live a life of wisdom and compassion, yet simultaneously found he
had a long way to go.
The Buddha became a person to me, someone with a history, someone I
could take as a guide. I found this vision of commitment and unfolding depth
encouraging. The tales helped me to continue my own practice despite
difficulties and challenges. As a Zen teacher myself now, I lead several unique
retreats each year with jatakas at their core. In these “jataka sesshin,” I’ve
